Incendio
by glo stars
Summary: 'I'm not his girlfriend' wasn't a phrase that Hester thought that she would be repeating several times in one day because of the assumed relationship between herself and a stranger, a dark, insanely handsome stranger with grey eyes and the most contagious grin in the world, called Sirius Black. Neither did she think she would be hanging out at Hogwarts with the cool kids.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N This is my first Harry Potter fanfiction, so wish me luck. Or you could just give me some Liquid Luck. Either way, enjoy. This story will be based in the Marauder time period, because I think James, Sirius and Remus are devilishly handsome legends. Don't forget to comment, fav or follow :) **

" I'm not getting that", said Hester flatly as the football sailed over the high, brown fence into the next-door neighbour's garden for the fifth time that morning. The annoying thing was that garden they were playing in was huge, and yet Alfie still managed to boot the ball over the fence.

Every time the ball was lost over the fence, Hester wanted to do two things. 1) Swear and 2) Get her wand out and use the ' Accio' spell to get the ball back. But she could do neither of these things because Alfie was 5 years old and non-magical. No, there was nothing magical about Alfie. He was just a chubby 5 year old muggle with a bad temper, that was being babysat by the reluctant 15 year old daughter of a family friend- Hester. Hester's mum had persuaded her that babysitting was easy. A big fat lie.

Hester was fairly tall for her age, with almost unusually long legs that earned envious glances from a few girls. She had a tiny waist, pronounced hips and a dancer's posture. Hester had a pale face, with high cheekbones, a couple of light freckles and dainty noise. Her facial features were all delicate, but she had a fairly strong jaw and sharp eyebrows. She had a prominent collar bone and delicate hands and wrists. She had muscles in her arms which weren't that visible, the muscles in her legs and abdomen more apparent. Her dark hair was plaited over the crown of her head in an arc at the front. The rest of her hair flowed down her back in silky, black waves. Her eyes were a murky green. She was wearing short shorts and a black crop top as the weather was warm, however the combination of bare skin and fence climbing had resulted in a few splinters.

She was usually of a sweet temperament, when not plagued with something that was as annoying as Alfie, and was fairly positive about life in general.

Alfie looked at her with a scowl.

" I want my ball back", he said.

" Then get it yourself", she retorted, as if he was the same age as her. Realistically, he couldn't even climb the fence.

He gave her a look.

" But"-

" Okay, fine I'll get it. But this is the last time", she said sternly, carefully picking her way over the brambles to the fence.

Alfie's frown faded and he sat on the grass, watching Hester contentedly.

" Quidditch is so much better than this", she sighed, wishing she was back in the world of magic.

" What?", said the boy, confused. Of course he wouldn't know what quidditch was.

" Doesn't matter", she said.

Being the athletic type, Hester made it over the fence into next-door's garden in a flash. But she didn't have a clue where the football actually landed.

" Where the hell did it go?", she muttered to herself.

She glanced up at the property owner's grand, London house, towering and stately against the blue sky. Despite the sun, the house and garden looked bleak, as if the life had been drained out of it. The many, large windows made her nervous because they increased the likelihood of her being spotted by the owner.

She searched, the gravel path crunching noisily under her feet. She peered amongst the roses bushes for the football, and under a rusty, black, cast-iron bench. But she found nothing.

Sighing she took out her wand, giving into the temptation to use magic to put an end to her fruitless search.

" Er, hello?", said a voice behind her.

Hester whipped around, hiding her wand behind her back.

It was a boy. Something that 4 years at Beauxbatons Magical Academy for Girls had not prepared her for. She wanted to run, but she was rooted to the spot like they always are in horror movies.

She stared at him. He was the most handsome boy she had ever met. He was tall and athletically built, his muscles visible through his tight, blue button up shirt. He wore black, semi-tight had a handsomely scruffy look about him, his black hair was swept casually over his forehead in a rough arc. Further more, his facial features were chissled and regal and, behind the casualness, something screamed royalty. His high cheekbones and cupid bow lips were classically dazzling. Lastly, he had big, grey eyes.

The boy looked her up and down, evidently wondering who on earth she was.

" I'm- I was just getting the football. Alfie kicked it over the fence, so er- do you mind if I look for it?", said Hester, blushing.

The boy showed a pearly grin.

" Not at all", said the boy brightly, " but it might be easier if you use your wand".

She jumped at the mention of magic because she had thought he was a muggle, a non-magic person.

The boy chuckled, a low musical sound.

" You thought I was a muggle?", he said, smiling.

Hester nodded shyly, fiddling with her wand.

" No, I couldn't live without magic. I'm Sirius Black and I go to Hogwarts, but I've never seen you there before. You're 15, right? Where do you go to school?", he asked curiously.

" I'm Hester, I used to go to Beauxbatons, but I'm joining Hogwarts at the end of the summer", said Hester quickly with a smile.

Sirius grinned- he was so outgoing despite the fact she was a complete stranger.

" Seriously? That's awesome! What house team do you want to be in?", he asked.

" Gryffindor", she replied automatically.

His grin grew.

" The best house", he said," I'm in it".

" Are you saying it's the best house because you're in it?", asked Hester playfully with a grin of her own.

" Of course", laughed Sirius. " Oh look, there's your football". He walked over to a thick, green bush and pulled out the football, which had been lodged underneath it. He handed to her and she took it, thanking him.

" I've tried football, but it's dead boring compared to quidditch", said Sirius, " Muggles are so uncreative".

" I know", said Hester, " I miss quidditch".

" You like quidditch?", he asked.

" Love it", replied Hester smoothly.

" Want to play it sometime? I've got a spare broomstick", he offered.

" That sounds good. I'm staying with the family next door for a few days, so I'm sure we can arrange something", said Hester enthusiastically.

" Yeah?", said Sirius happily, " cool".

" Well I'll see you again soon", said Hester as she made her way back over to the fence, careful not to tread on the roses, " I must get back to Alfie, Merlin knows what he's doing- I'm supposed to be babysitting him".

Sirius followed her to the fence and gentlemanly offered to help her up to the first cross panel of it.

" Thanks", she muttered.

" No problem", he said.

She reached the top of the fence in a matter of seconds. She tried to go over the fence, however she came across something very strange. Above the fence there was an invisible barrier. No matter what she tried, she could not penetrate it. She had climbed over the fence no problem, but now she couldn't get back over again.

" It won't let me through", she said in frustration, climbing back to the ground and turning to Sirius.

" There's an invisible barrier or something", she told him with a frown. " Look", she said, lifting the ball above her head and attempting to chuck the ball back over the fence to Alfie's side. The ball bounced back off an invisible barrier and fell back into Sirius's garden. The barrier started where the fence ended in height and how far it went up, she had no idea.

Sirius frowned, before realisation dawned on his handsome face.

" I know why it's doing that. There is some sort of Protego charm that conceals the house from muggles - it's a magical barrier that stops anyone from entering. It automatically renews itself because it gets weaker over time. It probably hadn't renewed itself for months and that's why you were able to get over the fence. But it must have renewed itself again as we were talking, because it's suddenly become much stronger", explained Sirius knowledgeably.

" Oh", was all Hester said, wondering what to do next.

" So I'm afraid you're stuck here with me forever", joked Sirius.

" I'm not complaining", said Hester with a wink that defied her usually reserved character. Merlin. Did she just flirt with him?

" Neither am I", smirked Sirius raking his eyes over her body.

Hester became extremely self conscious about her legs and her bare midriff, and she crossed her arms over her self protectively.

" My parents'll be home soon though", he said, as if Hester was suggesting doing something they would disapprove of " and they will be complaining. After all, you are a stranger and you could be dangerous", he said with a grin.

" Do I look dangerous?", laughed Hester, aware that she probably looked like the least dangerous person in the whole of London.

" Well, I don't know, you can't judge an cauldron by its contents", he said, with a pretence of wisdom, using an adaption of the common muggle saying- ( something about books and covers).

Hester chuckled.

" Come on", he said, " I'll get you out of this place". The way he said ' this place' reflected an intense dislike for the large, dreary house that he refused to call home.

He led her to a pair of double oak doors, which he opened cautiously, checking first that there was no-one around. She followed him inside. She was standing in large corridor. It was dimly lit by candles, as there were no windows to let the light into it. The floor was dark wood and several doors and a large, curving staircase lead off the corridor. It was lined with a rich, oil paintings, mainly of aristocratic-looking wizards and witches. Everything was static and silent. She glanced up and let out a gasp when she saw several, shrivelled house-elf heads mounted on plaques above the staircase.

" Are they real?", asked Hester, distaste evident on her face at the morbidity of it, knowing her question was a pointless one.

" Unfortunately", said Sirius, unsurprisingly sharing her dislike for them, " it is a family tradition".

Hester saw a Black family crest and realised that Sirius's family was a well-established pureblood one.

A side door opened and there stood a slightly younger version of Sirius. But this boy's eyes were cold- Sirius's were decidedly warmer. He was a bit shorter and much neater than Sirius. He also wasn't as athletically built as Sirius, but was handsome never the less.

" Oh, this is my brother Regulus, he's a golden child you know", said Sirius with more than undertones of sarcasm.

Hester tensed as Regulus frowned at her and she moved subconsciously closer to Sirius.

" Hi", said Hester.

"Who's she?", Regulus asked Sirius, rudely ignoring Hester.

" Why don't you ask her?", suggested Sirius, clearly irritated by his brother's lack of manners.

" I'm Hester", she introduced herself, cutting off a potential argument.

" It's your family name I wanted", said Regulus coldly.

Both Sirius and Regulus waited for answer, as Sirius was also interested.

" Wyte. W-y-t-e", she said frigidly, spelling it out.

Regulus's frown faded, obviously recognising her respected family name. Her father worked at the ministry, so her surname was moderately well known.

" Well at least you're a pureblood", said Regulus, leaning against the doorway and observing her, making Hester extremely uncomfortable.

" How do you know that? Have you got a list of the wizarding families that are 'pureblooded' or something?", said Hester.

" There aren't lots of pureblood families left, it's not that hard to remember their surnames", retorted Regulus.

Hester glanced at Sirius.

" My family, apart from me, has a pure blood mania", explained Sirius with a tired sigh. " They can't stand muggleborns or half bloods", he added.

" Ignorance", muttered Hester. Any prejudices against muggleborns was just ignorant. Muggleborns, squibs and half-bloods were equally as intelligent and deserving as 'pureblood' magicians. Some purebloods were just too proud.

" Pardon?", said Regulus.

" I said ' Ignorance'. Any people who think they are 'pure' because they have two magical parents are either ignorant or deluded. I have a muggleborn friend, Lily Evans, and she is amazing. She goes to Hogwarts, you might know her?", said Hester, directing the rant at Regulus and the last question at Sirius.

" Yeah, she's alright", said Sirius, " a bit crazy", he added with a smile.

Hester grinned and nodded, " Definitely".

Regulus sighed.

" You're like him then. A blood traitor", Regulus said resignedly to Hester, as if she was a lost cause. " I thought that Sirius had finally got himself a decent girlfriend".

" I'm not his girlfriend", said Hester, " but if I was, I'd invite him over to my house every day of the holidays so that he wouldn't have to spend them with you".

" I might take you up on that offer", joked Sirius.

Hester smirked.

Just then there was the sound of gravel crunching outside the front door.

Regulus smirked.

" Looks like mother and father are back. I hope they approve of you, Wyte, otherwise you'll both be sorry you were born", said Regulus.

Hester looked at Sirius and he looked extremely worried. He glanced at her bare midriff and legs, which were strongly against the pureblood tradition that a lady should be well-covered.

" Hester", Sirius said frantically, loosing his casualness, " pretend they are the king and queen. Pretend you love purebloods and try not to be scared. Don't answer back. Curtsy".

" Curtsy? Are you joking", said Hester loudly.

" I'm serious. And wear this to cover yourself", he said, grabbing a velvet cloak off the coat hook and handing it to her. If his mother saw Hester wearing a crop top, she would be dragged out of the house immediately- showing bare skin was a crime in a pureblood household.

Hester grabbed the cloak and put it on quickly, securing at the front with a silver clasp.

" Sirius-"

" Sorry about all this Hester", said Sirius guiltily.

" It's fine", said Hester, " after all, I did climb into your garden."

Sirius barked out a laugh and Hester noted again how handsome he was.

The front door was being unlocked and Hester's stomach dropped in nervousness.

The cloak was boiling hot in the summer heat.

" I've got to see this", said Regulus, who was no longer leaning, but stood straight, his shoulders back.

" Regulus if you mess this up, I'll kill you", said Sirius, and sounded sincere, " you better play along, otherwise you are dead".

Then the door swung open.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N Enjoy, review, fav, follow.**

Mrs Black swept in first. She was tall, her face was pale, there were wisps of grey in her hair and slight wrinkles under her eyes, but Hester could tell that she was once a beauty. She was ridged and upright, with her chin tilted up slightly, even though she was at home. Her hair was in a tight bun and she had big black eyes. She was wearing a black, silk dress. With a corset. It truly was a traditional pureblood family.

Mr Black was huge and scary. He was not tall, but very stocky and big boned. He had black, curly hair and wore a constant frown. He had a beard and wore a dark purple, velvet suit. Despite his bulk, his movements were controlled, calculated. His eyes were grey like a storm cloud.

Both of them stopped in their tracks when they saw Hester, and Hester wanted to curl up into a ball and vanish.

Everyone was silent while a house elf took their bags and while Mrs Black took off her velvet red gloves. Sirius's parents came forwards and stopped in front of Sirius, Hester and Regulus.

There was pause.

Hester opened her mouth and shut it again. Sirius and Regulus had a silent glaring conversation.

" Mother, Father, may I present Hester of the Noble house of Wyte", said Sirius coolly.

She curtsied gracefully, finally grateful for the ballet lessons she used to have at Beauxbatons.

" You might have told me that we were going to have company, Sirius", said Mrs Black. "Wyte", said Mrs Black, as if testing out Hester's second name. " Your father works in the ministry, not so? A pureblood?".

" Yes, Mrs Black", replied Hester politely.

" Hmm. So you are friends with Sirius then. Most of his friends are... less than adequate. Mudbloods, blood traitors".

Sirius's fists curled up into balls.

" How do you know him?", said Mrs Black curiously, hanging on her every word, ready to pounce on anything she disapproved of.

" I-er met him at...Hogwarts", said Hester nervously.

" I could have sworn that you and your father lived in France for a while, and therefore you went to Beauxbatons Academy", said Mr Black matter of factly.

" I did, sir, but I'm going to Hogwarts at the end of summer", said Hester truthfully with a small smile.

" Then how did you meet Sirius, if you haven't joined Hogwarts yet?", said Mrs Black, swooping in to catch her out.

" I had a tour of the school last year, and Sirius kindly offered to show me around", she replied wittily, proud of herself for coming up with such a lie. Sirius's lip twitched in the beginning of a smile.

" Well, I trust you are nothing more than friends?", said Mrs Black sternly.

" Of course. I mean of course we are just friends, miss", said Hester with a blush.

" I should think so. Though you are not bad-looking. And a pureblood of course. Sirius couldn't do much better for a match really, being the way he is", said Mrs Black bitterly and Mr Black nodded in agreement.

Hester had no response for this. Sirius did, but he was holding it in.

" Well get yourselves into the drawing room, no point in standing around", said Mrs Black irritably.

Regulus lead the way, Hester following, then Sirius and his dreadful mother. Mr Black went off to his study.

" She likes you", whispered Sirius discreetly as he passed Hester, " otherwise you wouldn't still be here".

Hester flashed him a grin, which quickly vanished before Mrs Black saw it.

Mrs Black sat down in a regal chair, which looked suspiciously like a throne and gestured for them to sit down. Sirius and Hester shared a double seat, while Regulus sat on a separate chair, which looked far more comfortable.

They talked tensely for 5 minutes, mainly about Hester. Hester could tell that she was basically being assessed as a possible wife for Sirius, which she knew was a common thing among the upper class, but all the same found it extremely disturbing. Sirius was equally as disturbed and kept shooting Hester apologetic glances while Regulus smirked discreetly.

" Are you not hot in that cloak?", Mrs Black asked Hester. She was, extremely.

" No, I'm fine thank you, Mrs Black", said Hester.

" I recognise that cloak", said Mrs Black, squinting her eyes has if that would help her remember where she had seen it.

Hester gulped and looked at Sirius, who had given her the cloak of a hook in the hallway. She wondered whether it was, in fact, Mrs Black's.

" Come here", commanded Mrs Black.

Hester stood up, but as she did so, she stepped on the hem of the cloak, which was too long for her. There was a ripping sound as the silver clasp ripped the fabric of the cloak and it slipped off her shoulders onto a pool of black velvet around her ankles. She stood there in her short shorts and her crop top. A sight that Mrs Black found scandalous.

" Shit", swore Hester, making it even worse. All pretence of manners was now gone.

Regulus's eyes widened in dismay, as did Sirius's.

But Mrs Black's reaction was far worse. She let out a blood curdling screech. Then she just sat there, trembling in fury, staring at Hester with black, black eyes. She knew she had been deceived.

Then Hester did the very thing her body was screaming for her to do. She ran, whipping out her wand from her waistline just in case. She ran into the long hallway and was about halfway down it when Mr Black blocked her way to the door, she screamed. She stood at the bottom of the wide staircase, adrenaline pumping through her. She knew she couldn't get past Mr Black. But neither could she venture back into the drawing room. When she heard footsteps behind her, she whipped round and saw Sirius with his wand out. He wasted no time in grabbing her hand and pulling her up the curving staircase. Mr Black, with a shout of fury, chased after them. They ran into a room which had Sirius's name carved into it- Sirius's bedroom. Sirius let go of Hester and slammed the door shut, locking it. He then proceeded to cast protective spells on the door to stop Mr Black, who was hammering on the door, from gaining entry. Sirius was rattling off all types of protective spells, which made Hester think that it wasn't the first time he had used his room for safety.

" Sirius Orion Black, how dare you run away from me!", shouted Mr Black.

Sirius continued to cast the spells.

Hester helped him, casting ' fortify' and several other spells at the bedrom door.

Mrs Black's voice was also to he heard on the other side of the door.

" How dare you bring such rude, indescently dressed strangers into our noble household?", said Mrs Black loudly.

" What is-".

Sirius put a 'mufflato' charm on the door, cutting off his parents' angry voices.

He sighed and flopped backwards onto his four-poster bed.

" I have feeling your parents don't approve of me", joked Hester quietly.

Laughter erupted from Sirius and bubbled up from the pit of Hester's stomach, and soon they were laughing so much that there were tears in their eyes. It took them several minutes to calm down.

" That was hilarious", said Sirius, " oh Merlin, the look on your face when the cloak ripped I shall never forget".

" You and Regulus looked like I had just mudered someone", laughed Hester.

Sirius chuckled.

Then then there was a momentary silence while Hester glanced around Sirius's room. It was a big room, with a chandelier and a great, carved, oak wardrobe. It was red and gold, the colours of Gryffindor house. There were various posters and photos on the wall. The room was a bit messy, with clothes, letters and magical objects strewn on the desk and floor. She saw a picture of Sirius, looking as handsome as ever, and his friends. They all looked nice, if not a little mischievous. Then she noticed several trophies lined up on his desk.

" Are they quidditch trophies?", asked Hester interestedly.

" Yeah, I'm a beater for the Gryffindor team", he replied, yawning and stretching.

" I'm rubbish with a bat, so I play chaser or seeker. But I'm not on a team because they didn't do quidditch at Beauxbatons", said Hester.

" No quidditch!?", said Sirius passionately, sitting up abruptly, " what kind of school doesn't have quidditch?".

" All girls schools don't tend to have quidditch pitches", said Hester with a shrug.

" When I become the Minister for Magic, I will change that", said Sirius lightly.

Hester laughed, " Is that your ambition? To become Minister for Magic?".

" Maybe. But I'd prefer to be an Aura", said Sirius.

Hester gave him a confused look.

" A dark wizard catcher", he clarified.

" Wow, really?"

" Yeah, but half the wizards I'd catch would probably be a relation of mine. I come from a dark family", said Sitius with a noise of amusement at the irony.

" Perhaps not the best job for you then", said Hester with a smile.

" I don't like my relatives, so I wouldn't have a problem with packing them off to Azkaban if I caught them", said Sirius darkly.

" Fair enough", was all Hester said. She stood up and went over to the window sill to look at the small, black owl that sat quietly on it's perch.

" Hello", she cooed softly to it.

" Be careful, it bites hard", warned Sirius.

Hester withdrew her hand quickly, but not quickly enough: the mean bird managed to bite her wrist. She retreated to the other side of the room, examining her bleeding wrist.

" Ow", she said, glaring at the bird.

" Told you. Are you okay?", said Sirius.

" I dunno, it's bleeding quite a bit. Have you got a cloth or something?", she said, flicking her wand at the carpet to clean of a spot of blood that had dripped.

Sirius stood up and looked at her wrist.

" That's quite a bite", he said.

He turned to the owl. " Bad owl. No more treats for you."

" I'll tell you what, I can bandage that up if you promise not to faint at the sight of my gorgeous body", said Sirius, taking his shirt off with a smirk before she could reply.

Hester kept her eyes fixed meekly on her injury. She heard a ripping sound and looked up to see Sirius cutting his shirt up into strips with a pair of scissors. Topless, of course. No doubt it was a sight many girls would pay to see. He flicked his hair, out of his face, concentrating on the task, his biceps straining as he cut. As he came over, she fixed her eyes back on the cut. He smelt of warmth and cologne. He took her wrist gently and dabbed up some of the blood with one strip. Then he took another strip and wound it around the cut several times before tying it off, all the while giving her a perfect view of his abs, not that she was staring at them. No, not at all...

Hester winced as he did an extra knot to secure tye bandage. He saw and was instantly concerned.

" Oh, I'm sorry", he apologised, " is that too tight?".

" It's perfect. Thank you so much", she said softly.

" Not at all", he said casually.

" I'm sorry about your shirt. I don't think you'll be able to wear it again", she chuckled.

He laughed.

" It's fine", he said. " You know, I-",

Suddenly there was there was a sound of splintering wood from the doorway and Hester and Sirius whipped round to face the door with their wands out.

" Looks like my parents are here for revenge", said Sirius grimly.

Despite all the protective spells, the door was slowly being rent in half, a large crack zigzagging down the centre like cracks in ice. No doubt it was a very powerful spell.

" What are we going to do?", said Hester frantically, as the crack grew.

Sirius went to the end of his bed knelt down. He stood up again with an old hiking boot in his hands.

" How's that going to help?", asked Hester sceptically, glancing back at the door.

" Have a little faith, luv", said Sirius lightly. " My best friend's dad turned it into a portkey", he explained.

She had no idea what a portkey was.

Sirius noticed her badly concealed confusion.

" A portkey is an everyday object which will transport you to a specific place", said Sirius, " didn't they teach you anything at Beauxbatons?".

" Yeah, well try having all your classes in French and see how much you learn", retorted Hester.

" You had your lessons in French? Awesome", said Sirius with a smile.

" Sirius, Beauxbatons is in France, of course I'd have my lessons in French. I wasn't going to have them in Portuguese, was I?", said Hester, rolling her eyes. " Anyway, can we get out of here now?".

" Right, let's go", said Sirius, holding onto the boot. They left just as the door gave way, and Hester was very glad they were going.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N Enjoy. And thank you ' The Darker Lord Voldemort' for reviewing and following, it's very encouraging :)**

" Where are we?", asked Hester, sitting up after being deposited on the ground by the boot portkey. They were on short-cut, fresh-smelling grass with the sun flooding golden rays and the sky as blue as copper sulphate crystals. She could not see much else because the sun was blinding her.

" Just relax", said Sirius, who was lying next to her, still topless because he had ripped his shirt to shreds I order to bandage her wrist. Hester had found that quite touching, that he would do that for her, a new acquaintance.

He pulled her back down and she lay still, following his advice. She shut her eyes and felt the sun's rays soaking into her skin.

" I knew that portkey would come in handy", came a smooth voice.

Hester didn't even open her eyes to see who it was: she was in heaven.

" Yeah mate", said Sirius with a grin, shielding his eyes from the sun and looking up at his best friend in the world: James Potter.

" How are you doing then?", said James, glancing at Hester, who looked a bit gorgeous with her long legs and toned stomach, bathed in the sun's rays and totally relaxed.

" I'm great, how're things for you?", replied Sirius.

" Pretty good, we went to France for a couple of weeks, played lots of quidditch mainly", said James, sitting next to Sirius." So who's your friend? Or girlfriend?", said James, with a gleam in his eye.

At this, Hester's eyes snapped open and she sat up. They were sitting on the vast, well kept lawn with a large pond and a gushing fountain, in front of a huge white mansion, with big, glistening windows, wide stone steps and a gravel-covered area surrounded by vibrant pot plants.

" I'm not his girlfriend", she said quickly, looking at James for the first time. She thought he gave Sirius a run for his money on the handsomeness scale. He wore glasses. This however did not detract from his handsomeness. He was tall, with messy, short dark hair which was somehow spiked up a bit at the front as well as being swept in a soft arc over his forehead. His skin was slightly tanned, probably from his summer holiday abroad. He had an athletic frame and his short-sleeved, tight t-shirt showed off an impressive set of muscles. He had classically handsome features with big brown eyes and a strong jaw. He was currently wearing a pearly grin.

" This is Hester, she's babysitting the kid next door to my house", Sirius told James, both boys amused at the speed in which Hester denied James's girlfriend suggestion.

" Well I _was_ babysitting him, I've kind of neglected him", said Hester with a small smile.

" Sirius distracted you then?", said James with an amused smile.

" I am very distracting", said Sirius with a grin, apparently aware of the affect that he had on people, or most girls of his age anyway.

Hester rolled her eyes at Sirius, and then they both recounted the incident of Sirius's parents and the cloak to James, who found it extremely amusing. Hester told him that she was leaving Beauxbatons and joining Hogwarts and hoped to join Gryffindor. Like Hester, James seemed to love quidditch and it turned out that he was the captain of the Gryffindor team. James was particularly interested in the fact that Hester was good friends with Lily Evans, and Sirius told Hester that James fancied Lily, who he apparently called ' his Lily flower'- according to Sirius this was only one of the numerous terms of endearment that James used in reference to Lily- though not when she was around, of course. Otherwise she would have cursed him onto oblivion.

" Does Lily ever talk about me?", asked James with a hopefulness that Hester found funny.

" Yes she does", said Hester, " in the letters she sends me. You seem to have been a big part of her life ever since her second year at Hogwarts".

" Oh, James made sure of that all right", scoffed Sirius, " he follows her around like a puppy, always hoping that one day she'll say 'yes' when he asks her out".

" I don't follow her around like a 'puppy'", said James indignantly.

" Lily's description of you certainly didn't make me think 'puppy'", chuckled Hester, thinking back to the letter where Lily had declared that James Potter was a 'deranged mountain troll with a mental capacity of goldfish'.

" She described me to you? What did she say?", said James excitedly.

" I don't think you want to know, mate, Evans hates you, remember?", said Sirius grimly.

" I don't think she hates you", said Hester to James, " but she does find you extremely annoying. That much is clear from her letters. If you stop bothering her then she might get to like you".

" Really?", said James sceptically, as if bothering Lily Evans was clearly the way forward.

" Yes", said Sirius, exasperated, " it's what I've been trying to tell you the whole time".

James sighed tragically, a sigh that reflected several years of pursuing Lily Evans. His eyes landed on Hester's wrist.

" What happened to your hand?", James asked Hester kindly. She could have sworn that most boys weren't as agreeable as the ones she was with.

" Sirius's owl bit me", said Hester, poking her injury tentatively and wincing.

" Oh, yes, I've suffered at the hands of that bloody owl of Sirius's plenty of times", said James, glaring at Sirius playfully.

Sirius smirked, " Owls don't have hands, Prongs".

Hester thought 'Prongs' was a bit of a strange nickname, but she ignored it and smiled at Sirius's teasing.

" I wouldn't have any hands either, if that nasty little owl had its way. It would bite them off if it had the chance, I swear it would!", retorted James animatedly.

" It?", said Sirius indignantly, " 'it' has a name".

" What's its name?", interjected Hester.

" Hades. He's called Hades", said Sirius, supressing a smile.

" Well, I think you couldn't have chosen a better name. Suits his character perfectly", said James, muttering something about ' owl bites' and revenge'.

With no warning but a deep rumble, the sky darkened with storm clouds, the perfect weather vanished and rain fell from the heavens in torrents.

The boys swore and Hester jumped to her feet in surprise, and glanced upwards, shielding her green eyes from the downpour, vaguely glad that Lily had persuaded her to pay a little more for water-proof make-up. The boys stood up as well, looking at the sky in wonder. Within half a minute, the three of them were soaked through, Hester's dark hair now black from being wet, and heavy with water. Hester was about to complain about her bare stomach, before she remembered that Sirius was topless: the huge droplets were hitting his shoulders and sliding down his glistening chest and stomach to the top of his black, saturated jeans. She tried not to stare and failed miserably. When he looked at her, she looked away, and immediately began to ring the water out of her long hair- a pointless activity as the rain was still pouring down on her head. Meanwhile, the boys agreed that Hester looked pretty fine in the rain.

Finally Hester gave up trying to dry her hair and threw her hands upwards, accepting the rain with a laugh as if it were a dear friend. She spun around in the rain a few times and then there was a mad dash towards the large , white mansion, which she assumed belonged to James's family, as there was a crash of thunder and the rain lashed at the lawn. James, Sirius and Hester sprinted towards a pair of French doors, taking the stately steps two at a time.

James managed to get through doors first and Sirius bundled in after him, glad to get out of the rain. Hester stood in the threshold, not wanting to invite herself into James's house. But James saw her dithering, grabbed her arm, and pulled her out of the rain into his grand living room shutting the doors firmly behind her.

Breathing heavily from their sudden sprint, they sat down. Sirius dropped into a comfortable-looking arm chair, Hester perched on the arm of empty leather sofa and James stretched out, dripping, on the floor. After a moments thought, Hester drew her wand from her waistband and used the 'exaresco' charm to removed the water from her dripping self. She went over to the boys and used the spell on them, leaving them feeling like they had cheated nature:the rain had soaked them minutes ago and now they were bone dry.

Just then, Mrs Potter bustled into the room in a pair of jeans and a striped cardigan, carrying a tray of biscuits.

" James, dear, would you like some-", she started.

Then she noticed Sirius and Hester. Sirius sat up a little straighter and Hester slipped her wand away, subconsciously tugging at her crop top, as if all parents disapproved of such clothes as much as Mrs Black.

" Oh", said Mrs Potter with a bright smile, " Sirius, nice to see you. How have you been?".

" Great, thanks, Mrs Potter. How are you?", replied Sirius politely.

" Oh, you know me. The same as always- busy with work and everything else", said Mrs Potter. " So who is this gorgeous young lady then?", she said, turning to Hester, her eyes alight with interest.

It took Hester a moment to realise that Mrs Potter was referring to her.

" A friend? A girlfriend?", suggested Mrs Potter with a wink at Sirius. Sirius was well known for his popularity with girls: he was a bit of a player. He had a 'fan club' of girls which consisted of more than half of the female population of Hogwarts, and they would do anything to be his next girlfriend.

" Oh, this is Hester", said James " she's Sirius's girlfriend".

Hester glared at James in annoyance.

" I'm _not _his girlfriend", she said for the third time that day.

" Oooooh seems that I've started a bit of a debate", said Mrs Potter with a grin that was almost as mischievous as James.

" There's nothing to debate, I'm not his girlfriend", said Hester indignantly, looking at Sirius expectantly, waiting for him to back her up. But Sirius just sat back, enjoying the show, amusement dancing in his grey eyes.

" Are you sure? If I were you I wouldn't say no to handsome lad like that", said Mrs Potter, who obviously never grew up properly. She was only having a bit of fun, but Hester found it embarrassing.

Hester blushed.

" I'm not his girlfriend", she repeated solidly, " and I never will be", she vowed out of annoyance.

Sirius raised his eyebrows slightly and James and Sirius shared a look. Hester had no idea what the 'look' was meant to mean, but it was obviously some kind of meaningful communication regarding the current topic of conversation.

" You can never predict things like that, dear", said Mrs Potter wisely, " would you like a cookie?", she added, before Hester could argue with what she had previously said.

" No thank you, Mrs Potter", said Hester tartly.

Mrs Potter let out a generous laugh.

" Look now, see what we've done James. Your friend Hester won't even eat my cookies now", said Mrs Potter, sorry for joining her son in teasing Hester.

" Het, have a cookie, seriously, they are delicious", said Sirius, going over to Mrs Potter and taking a cookie as if he was just another part of their family. He took a bite and closed his eyes in exaggerated satisfaction has if her were on a TV advert- although, being a wizard, he probably didn't know what that was.

" Well I'm glad you have such a high regard for my cookies, Sirius", said James's mum.

Sirius took another and held it out to Hester, as if giving her a cookie rather than offering her one would make her more likely to eat it. When she looked reluctant he forced the biscuit against her lips, laughing. Hester started laughing as she tried to evade the cookie that he was waving in her face and James and his mum laughed at her struggle. Sirius chased Hester around the room with the cookie. Hester and Sirius were separated by a sofa and Hester kept on running around it to escape him, but Sirius was fast, so she made a dash for a random door in the spacious living room. She ran up a red- carpeted, grand staircase, using the oak hand rail to help her up. A silent jinx flew over her shoulder, so she whipped around and sent a tripping jinx at him, which he skilfully ducked. He held up the cookie and Hester ran again. She reached the end of the corridor and came to the door with James's name engraved on it. She tried the handle, frantically trying to escape. It was locked. She tried the alohamora spell, but by then Sirius had caught up with her.

" Expelliarmus", he said triumphantly and the wand flew from her hand and he caught it expertly. He grinned. " Now you've got to eat it I'm afraid".

" I don't want to", said Hester stubbornly.

" Eat it, otherwise I'll force feed you", he said lightly.

She sighed. " You're impossible".

" I know, but you still love me", said Sirius playfully, holding out the cookie.

Hester crammed it into her mouth ungracefully. She chewed and swallowed. She paused.

" Nice. James better not have eaten the rest of them already", she said seriously, brushing past Sirius in search of more cookies.

Sirius looked after her and shook his head before laughing and running to catch up with her.


End file.
